The present invention relates to a system and method for obtaining the fingerprints of a person filing an application such as for employment, credit, license, identification or the like. It can also be used for obtaining the fingerprints of a person presenting a credit card or a check for payment, whereby such person may be accurately identified irrespective of the name or names he is using should the negotiable instrument prove to be worthless or the information on the application false.
The use of fingerprints for identification purposes is based upon distinctive ridge outlines which appear on the bulbs on the inside of the end joints of the fingers and thumbs. Comparable marks also occur on the feet. These ridges have definite contours and appear in several general pattern types, each with general and specific variations of the pattern, dependent on the shape and relationship of the ridges. A fingerprint can be classified according to its pattern type and this data can be systematically searched.
The Federal Bureau of Investigation maintains a Criminal File of fingerprint information and an even larger Civil File. The Criminal File is a potent factor in obtaining the apprehension of fugitives who might otherwise escape arrest and the Civil File is an invaluable aid in identifying missing persons and unknown deceased. In the latter category, the victims of major disasters may be quickly and positively identified if their fingerprints are on file, thus providing a humanitarian benefit not usually associated with fingerprint records.
The vast majority of persons have never been fingerprinted because the present system is too cumbersome an objectionable to be in common use. More particularly, with present day procedures, printer's ink is rolled out on a piece of glass or other hard surface, the fingers and/or hand of the individual to be fingerprinted are pressed upon the film of printer's ink and the hand or fingers are then placed upon a sheet of paper and an impression is made to form a record. The individual then cleans the ink off his hands with soap and water or with an appropriate solvent. The record is processed by classification and photographed if additional copies are required.
Even with a skilled operator, from time to time various problems arise in taking inked impressions. Indistinct or illegible prints are usually caused by one or more of the following factors: Failure to reproduce the focal points because the finger has not been fully rolled from one side to the other, and the bulb of the finger from joint to tip has not been completely inked. Allowing the fingers to slip or twist will result in smears, blurs and false-appearing patterns. Failure to thoroughly clean the fingers or inking apparatus of foreign substances and perspiration causes the appearance of false markings and the disappearance of ridge characteristics. Insufficient ink or too much ink obliterates or obscures the ridges. There are also considerable problems associated with taking fingerprints from the dead due to stiffening of the fingers or removal of oils from the skin if the body has been soaked.
Various chemical systems have been proposed to overcome the shortcomings associated with inked impressions. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 2,500,612 to Krogh describes a system where the subject dips his fingertip in a colored powder and then touches it to a strip of tape having a coating of adhesive material. The powder in this system interferes with the impression and is itself objectionable to the subject who is left "red handed" at least on his fingertips.
Another inkless system is described in U.S. Pat. No. 3,664,910 to Hollie in which a fingerprint is taken in an adhesive layer on a strip of plastic. The print is invisible on the adhesive surface and is not made visible until it is photographed under ultraviolet light.
Adhesive tape has also been used to lift fingerprints which have been made visible by dusting them with powder. Both rubber and transparent tape is available for this purpose in a variety of sizes. The adhesive surface is typically protected with a celluloid cover which is removed before the lift is made. White tapes are obviously used to pick up prints dusted with dark or metal powders and black tapes with light colored powders.
In view of the above, there is a need for an inkless fingerprinting system and method which does not dirty the hands of the subject and which can be readily developed in the absence of sophisticated ultraviolet cameras or the like. It is also an object to provide a system and method which makes provision for cleaning the fingers of the subject of any foreign material which would interfere with taking the print. It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide a system and method satisfying the above mentioned objectives. Other objects and features of the invention will be in part apparent and in part pointed out hereinafter.
The invention accordingly comprises the constructions and methods hereinafter described and their equivalents, the scope of the invention being indicated in the following claims.